《The Forsaken Saintess and her Foodie Roadtrip in Another World》 CH 1 Chapter 1 : Thank You for Throwing Me Away! T/N: This novel has a manga adaptation (this is how I found the novel in the first place). The novel seems cute enough so I decided to give it a go. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª Current Situation Co. Summoned to this world along with a beautiful highschool girl. My skill? Trash ? Myself? Useless Banished! ¡û This is me right now! ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. I-I¡¯ll tell you what truly happened for real this time! I was on my way home from a fishing camp when suddenly something that appeared to be a hole appeared under my foot and I fell into it. ¡º Is this a castle in a medieval age fantasy setting or something?¡»was what I was thinking when I saw the place I ended up at. Then there were a bunch of suspicious old men wearing pitch black robes saying something about ¡®saint summoning¡¯ or something along that line. Just when I was wondering what the heck is happening here, a blonde ikemen with blue eyes kneeled reverently in front of the beautiful highschool girl next to me, with such grace and elegance, he said he wished to escort her. All the while he glared at me with contempt saying ¡ºWhat a useless skill! Filthy trash!¡» Then just before he was leaving with the beautiful highschool girl, he said ¡º Just throw her to some place fit for someone like her!¡» As soon as he said that, blinding light appeared beneath my feet and before I knew it, I ended up in this super hugeee grasslands all by myself. Thus, my current situation. ¡­¡­¡­. Yeah. Despite all things said, I don¡¯t get it either. I have zero understanding of my situation right now. I really do want to ask someone, there¡¯s so many things I want to ask but¡­ Well as you can see I am completely alone. There¡¯s no single soul can be seen in this vast plains. In any case, there¡¯s nothing but grasslands and forest in here as far as my eyes can see. Hmmm¡­ This is¡­ There¡¯s a lot of things going on¡­ I wonder if I will be alright¡­.. Oh! What luck! It seems like all my fishing and camping equipment got transported (?) together with me! Taking a folding chair out from my cart box, I started to assess my current situation. The ground is a little bit damp but I don¡¯t mind it! I took out the notepad that I had just bought not too long ago and began to write questions after questions that I have. Like¡­ What is ¡º Saint Summoning¡»? What is ¡ºSkill¡»? Do I end up here because of the blonde guy said¡º Throw to some place fit for someone like her¡»? Ah! Which reminds me that highschool girl was looking at me while laughing ¡®fufufu¡¯ like that! ¡°¡­. Anyway the word ¡®skill¡¯ reminds me of a TRPG.¡± I like outdoor activities like fishing and camping all by myself but for indoor, I like to read TRPG stuff. *TRPG = Tactical role-playing games* Depends on the party¡¯s status and balance, but if I could, I prefer to set up a character with skill and job that allows me to¡ºCharge & Hit¡»the enemy. Ah, but it¡¯s not like I dislike rear guard characters or someone with a searching and exploring skill or something along like that. Still¡­.. TRPG, huh¡­.. ¡°It¡¯d be fun if I could see my ¡®status¡¯ or something like that.¡± Then, just when I was mumbling to myself¡­. A mysterious ¡®PING!¡¯ and a flicker sound could be heard then out of nowhere, an LCD-like screen appeared before me. The size of the screen is around 15 inch. *15 inch = 38 cm There¡¯s some kind of writing on top of the screen that emits pale green light. Name : Rin Takanashi Class : Otherworlder, Traveller HP: 18/18 MP: 15/15 STR:8 CON:9 POW: 15 INT:14 LUC:75 Special Skill : ¡¾Motorhome¡¿¡ù Only available outdoor Skill : ¡¾Survival¡¿ ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. For real? Status screen actually appeared¡­. Okay. You know, when you converse in numbers like this, my health and physical strength is really low, huh? Even though I like to go on solo camping and fishing! The heck?? My mental strength and intelligence seems high enough but don¡¯t you think this makes me look like the armchair warrior kind?? Doesn¡¯t this make me a useless character?! ¡­¡­¡­¡­ In any case, yeah. Seems like my skill can only be used outdoors. OH! This is why he called my skill ¡ºTrash¡»because we were indoor during the¡ºSaint Summoning¡»! I see, I see¡­ But he shouldn¡¯t have tossed me aside before checking my skill properly! Fucker better off dead! In any case, this is really a fantasy world! I hovered my finger over the Status Board (temporary name). Surprisingly, I feel a hard texture, like when I¡¯m touching my smartphone or my tablet. ¡­¡­¡­. I can really touch it for real!!!! And then, a new set of letters appeared underneath the letter that I touched nonchalantly. ¡¾Skill:¡¾Survival¡¿ Passive skill that¡¯s always active. This skill will provide support in the form of information to ensure the user¡¯s survival by adapting in both physical environment and social environment. In addition, if there¡¯s any unexpected situations that might potentially harm the user¡¯s survival, this skill will provide physical enhancement and adjustment in the user¡¯s mental level so the user will be able to think clearly. ¡¿ ¡­¡­. Ah. So this is why for some reason I¡¯ve been feeling strangely calm despite my current¡¯s predicament. I should¡¯ve been crying, panicking, or even falling into despair. But the reason why I¡¯m not feeling anything out of the ordinary is because this ¡®survival¡¯ skill has adjusted my mental state to ensure my well being. Even though I¡¯m stuck in this situation, the skill is still trying to ensure my survival¡­¡­ No, more like I¡¯m still trying to keep myself alive. ¡­¡­¡­.. Ah. I feel like crying. Even though I don¡¯t even understand what the hell is going on, I¡¯m still eagerly trying to stay alive. ¡°Well then, what about this ¡¾Motorhome¡¿skill?¡± I wiped my tears away and clenched my fist. As soon as I pressed the ¡ºMotorhome¡»skill on my status window, I feel vibrations from behind me. It¡¯s as if something heavy fell on the ground, making a loud impact that shook the earth. I turned my head warily and what greeted me was a sight of a green vehicle with a pale cream container cabin. This two toned vehicle¡­. At first glance, it seems the body of the truck is equipped with a camper shell, often used for residential purposes. This kind of camping car is commonly referred to as ¡®Truck Camper¡¯. I guess this is what ¡®Truck Camper¡¯or ¥È¥é¥­¥ã¥ó is. But if you look closely, this vehicle is not a truck camper but for some reason this vehicle is designed to appear like a truck camper with its two toned color. Unlike truck camper which is a two unit, one being the vehicle and the other the residential cabin. This vehicle before me is actually a one unit vehicle, the vehicle and the cabin are actually integrated together! This kind of truck fused with residential units is commonly called Class C Motorhome!!! Here you go, what japanese people call ¡®Class C Motorhome¡¯ or ¥­¥ã¥Ö¥³¥ó. I suppose when people hear the word ¡ºCamping Car¡», they will usually think of this front bunk type of Class C Motorhome, where the bunk bed is located on top of the driver seat. ¡°Haaaaah?! No wayy!! You¡¯re kidding me right?! No, no, no ! Like, seriously?? For real?!?!¡± My vocabulary is failing me right now despite ¡®survival¡¯ is actively trying to balance my mental state but there¡¯s no way I wouldn¡¯t be this excited right?!?!?! When I first saw this type of car, I thought ¡°Ah, looks good~¡± so I went and browsed for a bit. After further research, the price of the actual car along with the maintenance fee was just too much, I ended up closing my browser in despair. In short, I¡¯ve been wanting this beautiful gem for so loooonggggg!!!~~~~ This magical car enables me to enjoy the luxury of being indoor despite being outdoors at the same time!!! Ahhhh!! Geez! What is this goddamn OP skill?!?!! I couldn¡¯t help but grinning from ear to ear, the sight of my face melting in happiness must be far from desirable. I hopped around the camping car that suddenly appeared out of nowhere, despite such displays of happiness being unbecoming of my age. The driver seat and the lower third of the cabin is painted in dark green color while the cabin part has a light cream coating. On the door leading to the cabin, there¡¯s a vine creep design which accentuates the vehicle¡¯s elegance and upon closer look, there¡¯s a beautiful dark crimson rose on the door handle. This car¡¯s design is so super aesthetic!!! I pull the handle down with a clank and the door immediately slide open with a swish. And there¡­ On the other side of the door, there lay a whole world I certainly hadn¡¯t expected. ¡°Huh¡­¡­.?!¡± Right in front of the door, there¡¯s a wide living room with a table and sofa attached to the window side. On the right side there¡¯s a big refrigerator and a big kitchen sink along with a three-burner stove. Further on, there are doors with toilet and bathroom signs respectively. What. I. I don¡¯t get it. Isn¡¯t this like, way too big? Confused, I quickly go outside and examine the vehicle carefully. ¡­¡­¡­. Yeah. No matter how I look at it, this is the normal size of a Class C Motorhome and no matter how I think of it, there¡¯s no way such a large living room and kitchen set could possibly fit in this car. I go inside once again, the living room is brightly lit thanks to the sunlight illuminating through the big window. The kitchen is spotless and if my eyes were not deceiving me, there¡¯s a big bathtub inside the washing room. Okay. I¡¯m totally at a loss. Closing the door leading to the washing room, I tried to erase the sight I had just witnessed from my memory. ¡­¡­¡­ Wait a bit, okay? This whole thing is beyond this auntie comprehension. ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. Oh! Right! Let¡¯s go check the driver seat! Pulling myself together, I go outside to climb on the driver seat. It¡¯s a little hard since the vehicle is so big but I managed to bring myself in. Yup! The higher the driver seat is, the better the view. Actually I have a manual driving license but it¡¯s been a long time since I last drove a manual, thankfully this car is automatic! ¡­¡­ Speaking of manual, does this car have a user manual? I should open the dashboard and check¡­ Oh! There it is! This black file must be the user manual. ¡­¡­¡­.. Err¡­ What, what¡­.? ¡¾Thank you very much for utilizing the special skill, [Motorhome]. This skill allows the user to summon a motorhome at user¡¯s discretion as long as the user is outdoors. Kindly note that the inside of a dungeon will be considered as¡ºoutdoor¡»as well. This vehicle operates by taking the energy from within the atmosphere called ¡ºMagic Element¡»in which the collected energy will be used as a fuel for running the vehicle and operating any apparatus inside this vehicle. So the user will be able to use this vehicle leisurely without worrying about energy consumption. The water that comes from the apparatus inside this vehicle is produced by a magic circle implanted inside the interior of the vehicle. The user may drink the magic water produced as it is. This vehicle has a security function which prohibits anyone aside from the people recognized by the user from entering this vehicle. In addition this vehicle also has a concealment function. Only the people recognized by the user will be able to see this vehicle. In front of the eyes of the other people, this vehicle will remain invisible. The residential area is designed to bring utmost comfort for the user¡¯s life experience. Space magic is implemented to ensure comfortable living. With this, we hope the user will be able to enjoy this vehicle to the user heart¡¯s content. ¡¿ ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. Wow. Amazing. ¡­¡­¡­¡­. Somehow¡­ I feel like I¡¯m going to lose my mind¡­. I guess it¡¯s time to think of something along the line like ¡ºDon¡¯t think! Just feel!¡»? In any case, I get down from the driver seat and stare at the vehicle once again. The vehicle is shining without any speck of scratch or dust. The large tires supported the whole body firmly. ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. The hell¡­ This.. This special skill¡­.. Isn¡¯t this special skill is so much better than the ¡ºSaint Summoning¡»or whatever saint stuff they¡¯re talking about??? I was dumbfounded at the whole thing but somehow, another feeling is brewing inside me. Maybe it¡¯s joy, or curiosity, or motivation¡­ Or maybe the fear of the unknown¡­ ¡­¡­.. But, nothing will happen if I just stay here and do nothing! First thing first, with this ¡ºSurvival¡»skill, I¡¯ll embrace this seething curiosity which so unbecoming of my age and embark on an adventure! I¡¯ll live now and worry later!!! I decided to take my cart box that¡¯s laying near my foot and bring it inside. Once again, I open the rose patterned door. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª T/N: Wow, this novel is pretty lengthy¡­ Well, I¡¯ve decided to translate this series since I love easy to read cooking stuff. This is the first non-BL novel that I translated so I¡¯m a little bit nervous but whatever. Live now, worry later, right?!?!?!? Also after further research it seems like the japanese term and english term for camping car is so different? Like for english they use Type A, B, C or something. The japanese term is ¥­¥ã¥Ö¥³¥ó (kyabukon) and I just sorta guess it¡¯s the Type C one. CH 2 Chapter 2 : Searching for the Unknown Trout in My Dream ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª- Good day, reader-san. This is Takanashi Rin speaking. Currently I¡¯m loading my luggage into the cabin to prepare for my departure. Yeah. Somehow the space to store my luggage is kind of¡­.. Amazing¡­.. Who would¡¯ve thought this storage space has a similar subspace to a 4 dimensional pocket of a certain blue tanuki¡­¡­. T/N: Doraemon Who would¡¯ve thought I could fit in my fishing rod, tackle box and all of my camping gear in a storage space located behind the driver seat¡­.. Somehow¡­ I already¡­. This car¡­ Mo-chan(because he¡¯s a motorhouse)¡­ I¡¯ve given up on trying to think about anything related to Mo-chan¡¯s specifications! Because you know, when I was about to start Mo-chan up, I found out that¡­ Mo-chan doesn¡¯t even need a key!! Why? Because this skill belongs to me! That makes me basically linked to Mo-cha so I can start the engine(?) without using a key. When I go a certain distance away from the car, the car will lock itself and vice versa, if I go near the car until a certain distance, the car will unlock itself. What¡¯s with this godly skill?! Furthermore, this car also comes with a navigation system, it can give me information of the nearby terrain. What a convenient function! By the way, it seems there¡¯s a small lake not far from the direction I¡¯m heading at. Although I have access to drinking water, as I thought, you¡¯d still want to ensure you have a source of water when doing outdoor activity, right? Like for washing, cooking and even getting your own food! There¡¯s a lot of benefit in being near water. Also, after driving for a while, I finally noticed that Mo-chan is really comfortable to ride. Because of the general structure of a camping car where the driver¡¯s seat is located right on top of the tire, the driving experience usually feels so uncomfortable but that¡¯s not the case with Mo-chan. In fact, Mo-chan is more comfortable than the kei-car I used to drive back before I was sent into this world. Kei-car (ÝX×Ô„Ó܇), a japanese small car. Furthermore, because of how high this vehicle is, I thought the balance would be bad. Like I thought this vehicle would be bad with wind and bumpy roads or couldn¡¯t move fast but once again, that¡¯s not the case with Mo-chan at all. Really, Mo-chan is more stable compared to the kei-car I used to drive back then. Motorhome skill, you¡¯re amazing!! ¡ºYou¡¯ve arrived at your destination. The navigation is finished.¡» ¡°Ah, okay. Thank you.¡± I thanked the navigator out of habit, then I turned off Mo-chan¡¯s engine and descended down from the driver¡¯s seat to take a look outside. Before my eyes, there was a large lage surrounded by dense, green forest along with a clear blue sky with white clouds. The calm water surface reflected the surrounding scenery like a glimmering mirror. The water was so incredibly clear, I could even see the aquatic plant swaying along with the water¡¯s current and some small fishes playing around it. A sudden thought came to my mind and so, I opened the status window¡­. I knew it, I already knew it. There was the name of the lake displayed on a side window, located beside the status window. ¡¾Rielle Lake (safe to drink) A small lake located east of Reesevelt. The groundwater from nearby mountains gushes out throughout the area. There are no nearby human settlements so a wide variety of flora and fauna can be seen here. ¡¿ Yeah. I see. I can see it¡­.. Just like what ¡¾Survival¡¿explained. ¡ºThis skill will provide support in the form of information to ensure the user¡¯s survival by adapting in both physical environment and social environment. ¡» I was wondering what kind of compensation it¡¯d give me but I never expected it¡¯d help me to this extent¡­.. Survival-san is really amazing¡­. On the edge of the water, rocks in various sizes were scattered all around which seemed to be a convenient place to set up a kamado. Kamado, a traditional Japanese wood- or charcoal-fueled cook stove. There were also some driftwood laying around, it looked perfect to use as a fuel to light up the kamado¡­.. Suddenly, a splash could be heard and the water rippled along with it. Perhaps, because the spirit of a fisherman was deeply ingrained in me, my head immediately turned around to the direction of the sound. From beneath the calm water, a silver fish jumped out, breaking through the water¡­! Upon closer look, the fish were rising from beneath the water enthusiastically, they might be preying on the insects hopping on the water¡¯s surface. The details of those fish were also displayed on a status window. ¡¾Milk Trout (Edible : Extremely Delicious) A magical giant trout native to Rielle Lake. They¡¯re preparing for a breeding season at this time of the year and so they¡¯re more likely to eat the bait. As the name implies, their flesh is milky white and has plenty of nutritions and fat. Since they¡¯re a magical creature, they have no parasites and are safe to eat. ¡¿ TRO¡îUT¡î TROUT!! TROUTTTTT!!! For real?! I can go fish trout in this world too?! Huh?? Really?! And not an area trout but a native trout to boot?! Trout Area Fishing : It¡¯s like.. A fishing place where you can only do ¡®catch and release¡¯ using harmless equipment. Basically it seems the fish in there are only used for sport and the breed of the fish is limited. ¡°Huahhhhhhhhhhhh!!! Fishing!! Heaven!!!¡± Somehow, I¡¯m so happy, I¡¯m so excited, I already can¡¯t think of anything else!!! Things like what should I do first, the place to put my set¡­. Before I can think of all those things, my body is already moving first! I ran toward Mo-chan and jumped into the cabin. From the storage space, I took out my rod, tackle box, landing net and stringers. After making sure I got them all in my hand, I put on my polarized sunglasses and headed back to the water. I don¡¯t know the outlet of the water here but I could see the inlet of the river on the right side. There were small rocks near the exit of the inlet, those rocks divided the water and made irregular flows. The rise of the water near the inlet was pretty high, currently the water was still actively rising. I wonder if that means I should aim for topwater or shallow water¡­? First I¡¯ll take this ultra weight rod with a fluorocarbon set and attach a topwater plug, a lure that looks like a fake bait which has the best track record in catching fish and then I will attach this clearplug. After the rod is set, I will throw it as far as I can. With a swoosh, the plug went flying into the sky. Ooooh! It went better than I expected! It went a little deeper into the active water¡¯s rise. The plug splash landed on the water, creating a nice ripple¡­.. But just when I thought about how nice it had landed, the clearplug broke the water¡¯s surface and plopped underwater. ¡°Are you kidding me?! I got one already?!¡± While I was panicking from the inside, my body already moved accordingly. I made sure I was hooking properly by twisting my body a little and reeling it up fast. Thud! Something heavy pulled the rod back, the line got dragged away with a ringing sound In between the intervals, I could feel a slight tug, like the fish were tugging the bait away with their head. I think this kind of pattern is similar to a rock trout? While using the flexibility of the rod to parry the fish, I waited and then reeled, waited then reeled¡­ It was like an endurance battle. ¡°Nonononono¡­. This¡­ This fish must be pretty big, right?!¡± No matter how much I reeled and reeled, the fish kept on going farther away into the lake. The fish showed no sign of getting tired at all¡­. But, I mustn¡¯t be hasty. Don¡¯t rush it, don¡¯t panic, be calm¡­.. The fish will become tired eventually¡­! I could feel adrenaline rushing through me as the fish¡¯s reaction was transmitted through the rod I gripped. All or nothing. That was the only thing I could focus on¡­¡­ ¡°Yeeeeeeeshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!! Milk trout! I gotchu!!!¡± Physically it felt like quite a long time had passed by but actually it only took several minutes to catch the fish. Without the line breaking, without the rod breaking, the fish¡¯s mouth didn¡¯t get dismembered as well¡­. After struggling to death, I could finally put the milk trout in my landing net. ¡°Oooooooooohhhhhh¡­.! S-so white¡­.!¡± From the appearance alone, it looked exactly like the ¡ºtrout¡»I used to fish in a fishing place but it was really, really white. Talking about white trout, I remembered the fishing place often put an albino trout to be able to see the movement of the fish better but the whiteness of this trout was different from the albino trout. The albino trout was white with a hint of yellow but this milk trout¡­ It was really milky white, just like the name implied and the eyes were really black. The size was about 50 cm and it was the largest trout I ever catched. This trout looked even bigger than it should because of how fat the trout was. After being released from the tension, relief surged forward, my heart was still beating wildly and my knees were shaking. Well¡­ I felt bad but¡­! For the sake of having delicious thing, I must prevail¡­! I pinned down the flapping milk trout and with a sheath knife that I used as both a camping and fishing knife, I made a cut around the gills and the backbone of the fish near its tail. After that with a thud, I made a piercing, hooked the fish on a string and let the fish soak in the lake. In the blink of an eye, the surrounding area near the fish was painted in red. Seemed like the blood draining was going all right. It was easier to drain its blood while the heart was still beating after all. I felt a little bad for the fish but for the fish to taste more delicious, it was crucial to drain the blood immediately. Since I was granted the fish¡¯s life, wouldn¡¯t it be better to make sure the fish will taste more delicious? While the blood was drained, I decided to check the damage on the line and threw my cast off once again! I waited for the ripples to disappear completely and if there wasn¡¯t any response, try moving the rod in a walk the dog technique¡­ T/N: Walk the dog is a legit fishing technique, damn the author really did her homework. ¡°Ahhhh! There it is!!¡± The bait didn¡¯t drop down like it did before but the water still made quite a splash. The pull was as strong as the previous fish but the dragging of the line felt so much lighter. Maybe this fish is smaller than the previous one? ¡°¡­..Or so I thought but I got another milk trout.¡± The fish that I had just put into the net was about 40 cm long and the body was very thick too. How do I say it¡­ This fish¡­ It looks¡­ Incredibly good! I also cut the spinal cord near the tail and hooked it up on the string to let the blood drained out. Feeling good, this time I put on a shallow plug type and threw the cast away. The fish that bit on my bait was about 40cm long and had a very fat body too! ¡­¡­.Rielle Lake¡­ You¡¯re so amazing¡­ Don¡¯t tell me all the milk trout in this lake are about this size..?! I want to fish!! ¡­¡­..My motto is to catch and eat, I don¡¯t want to release the fish I got. But¡­ If I got another fish this size, I wouldn¡¯t be able to finish them all! There will be leftovers! Aaaaaaaaaahhhh¡­.. I¡¯m in a bind¡­¡­ I¡¯m totally in a binddddd ahhhhhhhh¡­.. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C T/N: You know what, I think I¡¯m going to drop this novel. At first I thought there would be a lot of cooking and some camping but turns out there¡¯s so many fishing techniques mentioned here! It¡¯s too much for a city girl who never held a live fish like me¡­. Dear foodie novel, I hope you will get a new daddy/momma soon! CH 3 Author¡¯s Note: This may be sudden, but I love girl x demi-human relationships (drools). I was wracking my brain in front of my fishing rod when I noticed something red suddenly appearing in the corner of my eye. "¡­Hm~?" There was something near the inlet where the stream meandered and formed a small bay. The color was out of place in the scenery so far, so when I looked more closely, I noticed it was a fallen humanoid figure wrapped in a red cloak. Oh, thank goodness. It was just a person. I was worried that it might have been some monster out of a fantasy¡ª "A person?!?!" I was about to casually ignore them when it immediately hit me! There was no way I could ignore a person!!! I promptly rushed over and realized that this fallen figure was a bit off from a "human"¡ªhe was a "demi-human". He had evenly cut silver hair that didn''t look ugly, two horns on either side of his forehead, a firm build that was between a buff macho and a lean macho, and leather armor often seen in fantasy manga and games. An o-o-o-o-oni?! ¡­Ah, but he wasn''t wearing that characteristic tiger-striped underwear¡­ By the way, there is a reason for the tiger-striped underwear¡­ Northeast is an unlucky direction known as "the demon gate" and is also associated with the placement of the cow and tiger in the Chinese zodiac. Therefore, oni ¡ú cow and tiger ¡ú cow-like horns and tiger-skin loincloth ¡ú tiger-striped underwear¡­or so I believed the story went. Well, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s some explanation out there! Anyway, once again, thanks to the wonderful work of Survival Skill, I wasn''t that shaken by my first encounter with a demi-human in this world. I was collected as I observed him. His eyes were closed so I couldn¡¯t tell what color they were. He was either the same age as me or slightly older, based on what I could tell from his clean yet slightly grim face. His chest was quietly yet surely moving up and down, and despite being submerged in water, his complexion looked fine. He didn¡¯t appear to be ¡°on the verge of death.¡± I felt a bit relieved! Also, Survival Skill didn¡¯t seem to have anything to report, so I should be fine approaching him, right??? "Um¡­ Are you okay? Can you hear me? Can you move?¡± ¡°¡­¡­ugh¡­ a-ah¡­¡± ¡°Mhm¡­ You appear to be conscious but can¡¯t move¡­ Your body will get cold if you remain submerged in water, so I¡¯m going to pull you to shore, okay?¡± ¡°Ah, no¡­¡± ¡°Please fold your arms together~.¡± I timidly approached Mister Oni and stuck close to him. As I called out, his closed eyes fluttered open. He was probably searching for the direction of my voice or checking his surroundings¡­ In either case, it was certain that his eyeballs were moving around. Also, the color of his eyes was a vibrant ruby color, like fresh blood or delicious strawberry candies. In any case, I was just glad that he was conscious! But he seemed to have some difficulty moving about. He struggled to get up, but he fell back down with a splat. This sequence of events repeated several times, and now he lay facing up, completely exhausted. Being submerged in water will rob the body of heat, so please excuse me as I drag you on shore! He seemed to be flustered for a bit, but that didn¡¯t bother me! I could clearly see how his strength was being taken away from him¡­ I went around to his head, had him cross his arms over his chest, wrapped both of my arms around his torso from behind, lifted him up using my knees, and gave him a good squeeze¡ª ¡°I¡¯m sorry if this hurts¡­ Heave-ho!!!¡± ¡°Ughhh!!!¡± Finally, I dragged him to shore while keeping his chest slightly above the water. This should be enough, right? Mhm. Mister Oni was groaning in an attempt to stifle a scream, but there really was nothing I could do about this. There was no way I could pick up and carry an oni all by myself. I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m really sorry. But if I was dealing with an elderly lady who was smaller than me, I could easily lift and carry her! Don¡¯t underestimate an acupuncturist and moxibutionist who works at a nursing home and visits patients¡¯ homes! I may look like this, but I¡¯m a certified caretaker! (smug) ¡­Err, well, I also had to be certified by the country to be an acupuncturist and moxibutionist. When I got my certificate, I learned that I couldn¡¯t be a functional training specialist like amateur masseurs or bonesetters. At most, I could use it alongside my nursing¡­ I coped with this idea since my company helped pay for me to get my certificate, and having it wouldn¡¯t hurt having one. But who would have thought that the requirements would become lax in the future so that even acupuncturists and moxibutionists could become functional training specialists?!!! I didn¡¯t really mind since I learned a lot from the prep course for the practical exam and the reviews I did to cram for it¡­ My workplace allowed me to enjoy my hobbies while providing me with enough salary to make a living. I didn''t encounter any unreasonable clients. I got along relatively well with my coworkers. And above all, I formed pretty nice relationships with my patients since I idly chatted with them in between treatments. Even if I could return, I would probably be fired for my long absence¡­ I was also planning on getting certified as a long-term care support specialist for my next one, but I don¡¯t know when I can go back, so all my effort might have been a waste¡­ Boohoo. Damn you. I won''t forgive you, Saint Summoning. You have no compassion. ¡­Anyway. While I debated if I should perform a nighttime curse during the daytime, Mister Oni got up. I wasn''t sure if it was from the pain of being dragged around, shock, or possibly both¡­but for whatever reason, he slowly crossed his legs and sat there. Did he recover? ¡­Wait. I wonder about that. Seeing as he was still slumped over in his seated position, he must be considerably exhausted¡­right? I was sure that when I looked at him before, he hadn''t lost that much strength¡­ "Um¡­ I elevated you above the water, but your body will still lose a lot of heat if your clothes remain wet. I''ll bring something to dry you off!" I expectedly didn''t carry any blanket towels on me, but I should have a poncho towel that resembled a bath towel with a hood meant to protect against the sun¡¯s rays. After I said that and was about to leave, Mister Oni seemed to have finally realized his situation. He looked down at his hair and cloak sticking to his tired face and body. "Wet¡­? Oh¡­ This¡­ Rien (Laundry), Folai (Dry)." He snapped, and green and red lights swirled around his body. Even before I could blink in my shock, his clothes and body, which had been drenched in water and mud, were cleaned as if they had been washed¡­and were dried of all moisture. ¡­Eh? What happened¡­? Was this magic? A fantasy?!!! I was so excited by this that I violently shook him. I had apparently grabbed his body in the nick of time as I had prevented him from falling over. If I wasn''t fast enough, he might have smashed his head against the stones in the river bed. Safe! Just in time!!! It was a close call, but no head injuries here!!! If an accident did happen, any conversation with him will continue to be pushed back¡­ Should I draw up an accident report or an accident prevention measure¡­ No, in this situation, an accident or a meeting would be pointless. How can I put it¡­? It was like I wanted to avoid things I emotionally want to avoid. "A-are you okay?" Mister Oni managed to raise his face despite how his whole body trembled. "¡­¡­hun¡­" "Hun?" "¡­I''m hungry¡­" "EEEEEEH?!" However, just as he made that unimaginable statement, his head dropped again and he appeared to have lost consciousness. Like the strings of a marionette doll being cut, he collapsed right on top of me. I somehow managed to support him and softly laid him on the ground so he wouldn''t hit his head. While I was at it, I also folded the parka I was wearing into a simple pillow and slid it under his head. "I guess¡­he''s hungry¡­" GROOOWL¡­ I heard this mysterious sound continually coming out from around Mister Oni''s stomach area. The cries of his empty stomach were amazing! ¡­Ah, well, when your body gets as big as him, you are sure to have some impressive metabolism¡­ The milk trout should be drained of its blood by now (although it would taste better if I could ferment it¡­), but it should be enough for a meal. It would leave a bad taste in my mouth if I just left him alone like this, and there was that saying: A meeting by chance is preordained. I''ll do something about room and board for a night, Mister Oni!!! CH 4 Anyway, I was reminded of how highly efficient Campy was. While there was enough space to deploy Campy around where Mister Oni collapsed, there weren''t any roads to drive on. Just when I wondered if I could put it away once¡­Campy disappeared! I panicked and begged, "Come out again~!!!" and then it came out again. ¡­It seemed that I could turn my skill on and off at will. That''s amazin''. I gathered the milk trout that were drained of their blood and my fishing tools as I headed towards Mister Oni. I brought out Campy again and fetched some camping tools. This time, I wouldn''t be using Campy''s kitchen but will be building a fire next to Mister Oni and cooking there instead. When nighttime rolls around, the temperature would drop, and although Mister Oni was dry now, he must have lost a lot of energy when he was submerged in the water. If he caught a cold from being in this place without any heat source, he could be in trouble. Additionally, while it would be fine to pile some rocks and create a simple kiln, I decided to use a campfire stand so I could easily manage the fire. Well then, let''s start building camp~. Umm¡­ Pitch the tent, gather some dry driftwood and grass, and set up the campfire stand. That should be enough for now, right? I had to get as much done as possible while there was still daylight. Once it turns pitch black, I won''t be able to see anything. But since I still had much to do, I decided to delay lighting the fire for later. By the way, Campy''s kitchen was a sight to behold. It was so amazing that it ignited my excitement as a foodie. In the storage space underneath the sink, there were kitchen utensils such as pots, frying pans, and knives neatly organized. There was even cooking wine and oil. On the shelves above the kitchen counter, there was sugar, salt, and a spice box. Moreover, casually placed next to the kitchen counter were appliances such as an air fryer microwave combo and a high-end rice cooker. I was even surprised to find little things like paper towels. ¡­Personally, I think that those "no-fry fried foods" are good as healthy food and for diets, but I can''t shake off the feeling that I''m being tricked. Sorry, I don''t think we can be friends¡­ I don¡¯t have any issue with the flavor itself. If someone told me that I was eating something "fried food-styled", I wouldn''t taste any noticeable difference, but it definitely wouldn¡¯t be "fried food"¡­ Yeah¡­ ¡­¡­ W-who are you calling a fatty?! I-I''m just big-boned!!! I simply have a bit more meat around my chest and waist!!! These clothes are constricting!!! No¡­ It''s fine. I know¡­ Maybe I''ll aim to be a plump gagwoman¡­ ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­ Anyways! Let''s talk about the kitchen! "Let''s see¡­ Barley tea, shiro-dashi, men-tsuyu, soy sauce¡­and miso on the top shelf¡­ Yay! There''s butter! And wheat flour and rice!!!" Inside Campy''s refrigerator was a tsundere-styled note, saying "The contents are freebies! I-It''s not like I prepared this for you or anything!!!", some unclouded barley tea, various seasonings, bags of wheat flour, and a transparent container about the size of a one-liter plastic bottle that held rice. For sauces, there was ketchup, mayonnaise¡­ well, just an array of every seasoning out there. "The top shelf has sugar, salt¡­ and is that a spice box? This place really has everything¡­ Below the sink, there¡¯s alcohol, vinegar, tomato cans, salad oil, and olive oil¡­" Under the belief that I should make sure I have a proper grasp of my inventory here, I rummaged through the kitchen¡­but I feel like I have everything that I would ever need! Wow, fantastic! By the way, the labels pasted on all the ingredients and seasonings were messily written in Japanese in a variety of fonts. Could all of these have been made in Japan? How can I put it¡­? The miso and soy sauce came from my local brewery. The butter was the same one my father sent me as a souvenir from his business trip to the north. The mayonnaise was the expensive, bottled one I bought on my payday¡­ It felt like Campy''s inventory was based on the contents of the refrigerator and pantry back at my apartment¡­ I searched more afterward, but it seemed that that was the extent of the available ingredients. I was glad I could make staple food with wheat bread and rice, but the presence of butter was very fortuitous! In any case, I filleted the milk trout with the pointed carving knife I found under the sink and cut it up into pieces slightly larger than bite-sized, leaving the skin intact. The skin was hard to remove, so I made sure to apply plenty of salt and pepper before skewering the fish to be barbecued since some of the salt would be washed away with the water and fat dripping off when I grill them. In truth, I could just make odori-gushi, but it doesn''t seem possible with this size of fish. Well, it''s fine either way! I don''t know how much Mister Oni can eat, but two fish only produced a sufficient amount. The remainder could be grilled and eaten at any time. I filleted another fish, wrapped it up with a piece of paper towel, and placed it in the refrigerator shelf to ferment. I plan on using it in the near future to make sashimi or carpaccio. Survival Skill said that this fish can be eaten raw, right! And I could throw the head, backbone, and stuff of the saw-edged perch into a pot and simmer them to make a fish stock. I wonder what kind of dishes I could make with it~. Now that I had prepared my ingredients, it was time to make the fire! I gathered grass first, then twigs, and finally thin sticks that would easily burn in a fire. I grabbed a piece of paper towel, lit it with a lighter, and threw it into the fire. In the blink of an eye, the fire on the paper towel was transferred to the dry grass, then the twigs¡­and finally the thin sticks. Once everything was on fire and the flames settled to a certain degree, I added thick branches. Yup, things were looking good. The thick branches seemed to have safely caught on fire. If I continue to periodically throw more kindling later, the fire shouldn''t go out. I set the BBQ mesh on top of the campfire stand, and if I place the skewers diagonally in a hole a bit away from the flames, the fish should grill nicely. After grilling for some time, the unnecessary water and oil trickled down and created puffs of smoke when it touched the fire. This was the charm of cooking with live fire~. The sun had long set by this time, causing my surroundings to be enveloped by a faint darkness. Only the area around the campfire stand retained its brightness. Even though I was so close to a dense, green forest, I couldn''t hear the cries from any bugs or birds. Only the crackle of the flames and the sizzling of the fish echoed. It was kind of creepy in a sense¡­ I rotated the skewers to ensure they didn''t burn, and as the amount of water dripping from them decreased, the skewers in their entirety turned a lovely color, indicating that they were done cooking. Trouts retain a lot of water, so they taste much better when you cook them well and drain them of that excess water. I looked up, about to call out to Mister Oni, when I saw him get up from the other side of the fire. "Ah. Are you awake? How do you feel? Do you hurt anywhere?" "¡­¡­I''m hungry¡­" "Aah¡­ Okay. Well, I''m glad you''re looking better. I just finished cooking them, so do you want some?" It appeared that Mister Oni hadn''t fully recovered yet as he still looked a bit dazed when he approached the fire. I held out a nicely-cooked skewer to him. He looked a bit wary, his gaze jumping back and forth between my face and the skewer. Well, anyone would be suspicious of the food offered by a complete stranger. But¡­ "Sorry¡­ Thank you." "No problem. We have to help each other when in need¡­" Mister Oni yielded to the bellowing growls from his stomach. His eyebrows lowered as he accepted the skewer. After quickly exhaling, he promptly sunk his teeth in. For a moment, his body stiffened and his ruby eyes widened. However, he quickly took two and then three more bites of the fish. Was the reason his vigorous munching didn''t look unpleasant because of his thoroughly refined looks? Well, I don''t really know! Now then. It was time for me to eat too! I grabbed a nearby skewer, blew on it to cool it down, and took a big bite! There was no point in maintaining grace and manners at a BBQ~. The skin was crispy and crunchy from being cooked in its own fat, and despite the thick layer of fat, I wasn¡¯t assaulted by an excessive fishy smell. Yeah. Just this alone made it delicious! When I chomped down on the light brown flesh grilled in the open fire, fragrant steam escaped from the opened cross-section. The outside had already begun to cool, but the inside was still piping hot. Exhaling the hot steam and taking large gulps of the cool air, I continued to chew on the fish. The first thing I tasted was a slightly pronounced salty flavor. But each time I bit, the flavor of the sweet fat filled my entire mouth, and the saltiness and sweetness blended together. Even though the smooth, white flesh of the fish had all the excess moisture removed and was thoroughly cooked, oil spilled out with each bite and the feeling made my mouth melt. Also the faint scent of milk reaching my nose at the end made me realize why the fish was called "milk" trout. De~lish!!! When the inside of my mouth began to burn, I drained in one gulp the cup of barley tea I grabbed from inside Campy''s refrigerator! Pwah!!! My mouth instantly cooled down, and the saltiness and greasiness were washed down my throat. Wow, this was the best!!! Soon enough, Mister Oni had already finished one skewer and was staring at me. I took the cleaned skewer and handed him another fish skewer. He looked dumbfounded again, but it seemed like he couldn''t win against his hunger. He furiously chomped on it. "Umm, please eat as much as you''d like. There''s still plenty left." Mister Oni didn''t respond. He bobbed his head in acknowledgment, but he seemed completely engrossed in eating. In the blink of an eye, he finished one then two skewers without saying a single word. I felt like his sparkling eyes were singing praises on how delicious the skewers were, so I felt proud as the one who seasoned them! But, if he continues at this pace, there won''t be enough skewers¡­ When I added more kindling to the campfire stand, I placed pieces of the fish directly on top of the mesh next. I would need to be more mindful of the flame''s strength when cooking directly with fire, but this time was fine! As I ate the fish skewer in one hand, I managed the fire and grilled the fish with the other. During that time, Mister Oni continued to eat at the same pace. By the time I finished one skewer, he probably ate three. To think that Mister Oni would quickly devour the grilled fish¡ªroughly the size of half a milk trout¡ªeven after gobbling up a majority of the fish skewers in the blink of an eye. Finally satisfying his stomach, Mister Oni began nodding off while seated cross-legged across the fire. Getting sleepy after filling your stomach, huh. I super get that. But he''ll get cold from the nighttime wind if he sleeps here, and his body would hurt from lying down on stones. I''ll lend you my tent, mat, and blanket, so please sleep there, Mister Oni. As for a sleeping bag¡­well, he wouldn''t be able to fit the one fitted to me, so he''ll have to do with just a mat and blanket. "Um¡­ Behind us, I have a tent¡­a single-person tent and a blanket prepared. If you''d like, please use it." "¡­Mm¡­¡­ Sorry¡­I''ll¡­use it¡­" I approached him and lightly tapped his shoulder. He looked completely dazed and out of it as he dragged his body toward the tent. Hm, I wonder. I know I should be worried about strangers possibly running away with my stuff, but the loss of such things didn''t seem that severe now that I know I have Campy with me. Of course, I''ll still cry boatloads since I love my stuff¡­ But, that oni¡­ He had the appearance of a soft-hearted person. How can I put it¡­? I mean, he didn¡¯t seem like the kind of person to steal. Well, Survival Skill didn''t give me any warning, so in my opinion, this should be fine enough, right? Now then. It was time for me to sleep after I extinguish the fire! This charcoal extinguishing pot was so efficient. Yeah. Let''s think of a way to use these ashes in the future. I casually looked up at the sky and saw two moons floating in the empty sky. ¡­Was this what was known as "binary stars"¡­? One was a crescent moon while the other was a full moon. I would have never seen such a sight back in Japan, so the realization that I really was in an unknown world slowly filled my mind. I quickly dumped the contents of the campfire stand into the charcoal extinguishing pot and rushed inside Campy''s cabin to escape. ¡­I couldn''t endure standing in that spot overflowing with otherworldliness¡­ I drew the curtains on the window closed, isolating the inside of Campy from the binary stars floating in the night sky. I sat down on the bouncy, spring-loaded sofa and slowly calmed my nerves which had tensed from the otherworldly sight. Just several hours ago, I was certainly standing in my original world. I made a living using the knowledge I gained and found a place where I could belong. On my days off, I would hang out with friends or immerse myself in my hobbies to enjoy myself for a bit. ¡­But what about now¡­? I had no job, money, knowledge, information, family, friends, teachers, seniors, juniors, clients, or patients¡­ Everything associated with me doesn''t exist in this world¡­ Everyone connected to me doesn''t exist in this world¡­ ¡­What should I do from now on¡­? My throat burned and my eyes welled with tears. As I tried to hold them back, my vision gradually dimmed. Aah¡­ If only this were a dream¡­¡­ This silent whisper circled around my head before sinking deep into my consciousness¡­ Author¡¯s Note: By the way, the completely farm-raised rainbow trout you can fish in the controlled fishing ponds in Japan are parasite-free, so you can eat them raw. There are plenty of websites out there with more details, so those who are interested in such, please look them up! (???) Personally speaking, I find fresh, chilled carpaccio using itadaki trout to be delicious (¡ä©V£à) Translator''s Corner (i.e., where I explain stuff):